Hi all I arrived at the doctors this morning in a lot of pain , I said to my doctor this cant be right to live like this,he said have we tried physico with you I gave him a look and said the last thing I want to do at this time is talk about that I need something to get rid of this pain.

I have been given Gabapentin I will take my first one before bed im am concerned,due to reading the side affects.

Has any one tried theses if so what are your experiences with them also im going away for a few days and will want a drink or two but reading some of the horror stories im not sure I should.

I apologize for my spelling or lack of punctuation im in no mood to be worring about that lol.

33 Replies

Hi Pipper, don't worry about spelling or punctuation, we don't care about that.

I'm on Gabapentin. I take 900 mg every bedtime and they help me sleep. I don't think I've had any side effects to be honest. I was put on Pramipexole but they made me feel really sick so got the Gabapentin instead. I have a (large) vodka every night when I've finished work and haven't had any problems with that either. Not sure how a few would affect me. Might be trying a few more tonight lol cos I have more pain than usual for me today.

Doctor has started me on 100mg one a night, see how that goes I can take up to 300mg.

How funny is that I was also on Pramipexole and they also made me feel really sick so fingers crossed that these ones are ok, have they helped you.

Im having a flare up at the mo grrrrr for three weeks iv had the maxim of 4 hours sleep each night, (grumpy downwards smile).

I feel more positive about taken them now and if the drink affects me (1),it will be a cheap weekend lol and (2),ill let my hubby worry about it lol im going to take them from tonight then Thursday ill have a drink at home and see if it affects me.

If I feel like I have done I wont be going any where I cant be trying to be ok when Im not and I don't want to spoil other peoples enjoyment by moaning about my pain oh and I can moan lol moaning helps me, if I keep quite I end up crying.

i have piled weight on since taking gabapentin but never thought it was due to my meds . i am dieting and finding it really hard (only loosing half to a pound a week ) . to loose weight . what do you do suffer the pain or take the meds .

i to am on this medication . in the process of reduceing it to 300mg twice a day. i to am gaining weight. the doctor gave me strong painkillers co-codamol 30/500. when im down to 300mg twice a day they will add another medication in to help. i was given the advice to keep going back to gp untill your happy

well this is the prob i would only stay on them if they really gave me pain relief and suffer putting on the weight but no way am I staying on them if there only going to take the edge of cant bloody win although weight can depress you pain can depress you more grrrrrr to all of it.

5 years agoHidden

I've put weight on too but I like to blame my age and the fact that I've gone through the menopause. Oh and my underactive thyroid. It's their fault, not mine! lol. I also thought it's probably due to the fact that I eat too many biscuits and chocolate - as mentioned in a previous post about sugar cravings. I must read the very long list of side effects. I never bother reading them........

I take 400mg gabapentin 3 times a day, total 1200mg per day. I dont seem to have any side effects with it. I was on 3x300 but had a bad flare for a week, so GP upped the dose which I know is ok as I am under the care of Vinod Patel at the George Eliot hospital ME Clinic. Took a couple of days for the new dose to kick in. Dont be impatient with it, it takes a while to accumulate in your system

i was on this for 8 wks. tks a while to kick in as u hve to grad up the dose.

i put on a stone in space of 4wks due to meds!

body got used to it and they didnt help

now on pregablin which is better at the mo.

weight dropped a bit. but struggle to get bk where i was. wrk hrd to loose 3stone on ww! now all undone. i do crave bit more sweet stuff too but try to limit it to friut. cant say i feel hungry really just eat because i hve too.

Thanks Cherie and Julieru patient is my middle name lol If I get sleep at night ill suffer the weight I cant live with pain all day and all night I have episodes with pain and not sleeping and usually last 2 to 3 weeks at a time and each time seems to be worse I could quite easily do my self in its that bad so if these tablets help me at night all will be good

Thank you well in theory lol i should loose weight because if i sleep through the night i wont be attacking the cereals,toast or biscuits.Even though they have helped you has it stopped all the pain in what way has it helped.

It has not stopped everyday joint pain etc it has definatly eased it, but it helps with my burning horrible nerve pain that was the worst. It seems to give me a boost especially my tea time one i can definatly tell when i havent took it on time.

It also helps along with amis to get a good night sleep and if i get sleep i can function, if i dont get sleep, my partner loves to go to work to get away from me lol.

Because it masks my pain i can feel all my numbness tingling, pins and needles, so i cant win really.

Hi folks, i was taking Gabapentin for many years and then they brought out a newer improved version called Pre Gabalin about 5 years ago so i changed to that and im currently trying to wean off them as i dont feel they help me with pain, Also i Put on 5 stone in weight while taking them, so be Carefull as they make you hungry and the weight will creep on ! which will also make your other symptoms of Fibromyalgia worse, speak to your GP or Pain Clinic if your at all worried, gentle hugs to everyone, Amanda

Thank you well im on my second day but iv only taken 100mg each time i can go up but I want to see how I go for a week or so then up them.I was up until 4am this morning iv had one good nights sleep in almost four weeks.

My shoulders are bad at the mo burning with pain.

The doctor gave them to me for my irritable leg syndrome,it early days but when I get up to 300mg a day and I still feel the same or only a little bit better I will tell the dr that im not willing to put drugs into me unless they work and at least take half the pain away.

Thank you every one weight gain is not what i want to here but hay ho I loved the bit when you said GENTLE hugs no one have ever said that it made me smile.

Yep, I'm on Gabapentin too - 3x300mg three times a day, together with Paracetamol & Tramodol. I've found its really helped to keep my pain to a level that I can cope with.

When I'm going through a 'good' phase I have my GP's agreement that I can gradually reduce the dosage to the minimum needed to manage the pain, and I've found it really helpful to be able to 'manage' my condition myself, rather than it being decided by someone else. Its one of the few things I CAN control and helps me to feel more positive about myself and the condition.

I've been on Gabapentin for about 4 years now and have put on about a stone in weight, but I've put it down to the fact that I have so little mobility these days I mainly sit so don't burn off the calories. I've heavily modified my diet to try to keep the weight gain under control (I haven't cut anything out, just cut down portion sizes).

I just worry what is going to happen when my body becomes too used to this medication and it becomes necessary to find something else!

I take gabapentin I started off taking one a day and gradually increasing to one three times a day! Taking one or two is ok but unless i am in really bad pain i dont take three as it makes me feel a bit too fuzzy. I have to sometimes make the choice between pain and alertness. Anyone else find this?

Totally understand what yr saying but all my dictions are based on choosing if i feel i can do some thing but know I will suffer for it ill think very hard if what im going to do will be worth the pain.I have only taken one 100mg a night tonight will be my 5th night so far the only thing that might have gone from a 10 to an 8 is the irritable legs but I think that could be the few malt whisky s iv had just before bed.My shoulders are still burning and i still feel like iv had a good punching all over.

I take 900g gabapentin 3 times a day...no side effects that i've noticed...and only a small amount of pain relief to be honest...I get so sick of all the different concoctions that the doctors just chuck out at you...Have done physio, hydro and everything else that is available on the nhs...but all in vain...Fibro pain wins every time...xx

thank you Hevs I would tell the dr to bring me of them if there was not much difference,why take such a high dose with little affect on your pain well iv got to say this 100mg is not doing any thing to me my shoulders are burning with pain.

Hi I have been taking these tablets for a few months now I am on the top dosage and I take 600 3times a datyh that is highest level you can take. I must agree I have very little or no pain at all. I ever read the paper inside as my husband says I will then start thinking about what they are. Perhaps you could let me know as I am now interested.

Hi I have been on 600mg 3 times a day for a while now, they take the edge off the pain but i still have to take Ibrufen 3xday plus paracetamol x2 . I have got fibromyalgia and osteoarthritis some days I can hardly walk as my feet hurt so much.